Social Determinants of Cardiovascular Risk Factors Among Asian American Subgroups

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Health Disparities
• Cardiovascular Health

Background:

• Social determinants of health (SDOH) are critical in the development of cardiovascular risk factors.
• Investigating the specific associations between SDOH and cardiovascular risk factors within diverse Asian American subgroups is essential.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the relationship between social determinants of health (SDOH) and various cardiovascular risk factors.
• To identify specific SDOH associations within distinct Asian American subgroups.

Main Methods:

• Utilized data from the National Health Interview Survey (2013-2018) for a nationally representative sample of US adults.
• Categorized 27 SDOH variables into economic stability, social cohesion, food security, education, and healthcare utilization to create an SDOH score.
• Analyzed self-reported cardiovascular risk factors including diabetes, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, obesity, physical activity, sleep, and nicotine exposure using multivariable-adjusted logistic regression.

Main Results:

• An increased SDOH score was linked to higher odds of diabetes in Chinese and Filipino adults.
• Filipino adults with higher SDOH scores showed increased odds of high blood pressure.
• Insufficient physical activity was more prevalent in Asian Indian, Chinese, and Filipino adults with higher SDOH scores.
• Suboptimal sleep was associated with higher SDOH scores in Asian Indian adults.
• Nicotine exposure was more common among Chinese and Filipino adults with higher SDOH scores.

Conclusions:

• Unfavorable social determinants of health are significantly associated with increased odds of cardiovascular risk factors across various Asian American subgroups.
• Developing and implementing culturally specific interventions that target social determinants of health can potentially enhance cardiovascular health outcomes for Asian Americans.